Follow Blog via Email

Break out those exploding shurikens, because Rage of Honor is (definitely not) the Greatest Movie EVER!

Click on the movie poster or the title above to download the review.

Review in a Nutshell: Crippled by terrible camera-work and Sho Kosugi’s broken Engrish, Rage of Honor is not an ideal ninja movie. Still, we at the Greatest Movie EVER! Podcast are thankful for ninja movies in general.

6 Responses

As you know, our blockod is perfectly legahl. This is getting out of hand – now dere are TWO of dem! PROOOOOCESS THEM. Sorry, I’ll stop now. This movie sounds awful, yet awesome simultaneously. I won’t buy it, but I’ll certainly check it out if it comes on TV.

I never even HEARD of Kamakura as a GI Joe character. When I looked him up, the reason became apparent: he was never in the 80s GI Joe: A Real American Hero cartoon, AKA the GI Joe cartoon that matters. You want a GI Joe ninja in camo? Firefly is the alpha and omega.

I’m putting it all on the line once again and declaring two days prior to release that Ninja Assassin will be the third greatest film of 2009, a spot currently held in a tie by Gamer and GI Joe: Rise of Cobra (which contained a great deal more REAL ninjanigans than Rage of Honor, which I also own a copy of courtesy of Danno!). For reference, Crank 2: High Voltage is the undisputed #1 and Black Dynamite is #2. Early reports–which unlike Paul who reads complete and total spoiler discussions for every movie before seeing it so he can express disappointment over the fact that he that he knew how things would happen, I do my best to AVOID–suggest that the CG weapon shots and slow motion bits seen in the trailer (which I accidentally saw once) are the only ones used in the entire film.

Instead of watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade or preparing turkey, I and my dad decided to go see Ninja Assassin first thing in the morning on Thanksgiving Day (today) because above all else–more than family, friends, food, companionship, and whatever–my dad and I am TRULY thankful for the ninja. We are also thankful for the $4 morning show at the digital DLP theater.

Ninja Assassin is NOT the 3rd best movie of the year, as I originally predicted. It is possibly tied for 2nd best movie of the year with Black Dynamite. Sho Kosugi is still the man (I’m convinced they just went to his house and followed him around during his day to day routine, and then edited it into a movie), and unlike Rage of Honor or pretty much all anime ninja outside of The Dagger of Kamui, the ninja in this movie are rockin’ the full black ninja getup.

That said, I can see Paul not liking it despite the near-total lack of slow motion; I suspect the reason the trailer highlighted those bits was because they were probably the only parts of the action that could be shown on TV. Most of the tremendous levels of blood shed is incredibly bright red CG blood that looks hilariously fake, but this to me is no different than the incredibly bright red paint blood of old ninja movies that looks hilariously fake. I’m perfectly down with it, but I also didn’t mind it in 300, V for Vendetta, and Rambo (whose CG blood and dismemberment was less exaggerated by comparison).